Thursday, February 5, 1998Last modified at 1:18 p.m. on Wednesday, February 4, 1998

Slaton teen indicted in school arson caseSlaton teen indicted in school arson case

By MEGAN DONNELL

Avalanche-Journal

A 17-year-old Slaton High School student was indicted Wednesday on charges of breaking into the school and setting the fire that destroyed the school library.

Greggorylr P. Green faces up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine if convicted of arson and two years in state jail if found guilty of burglary of a building with intent to commit theft. He was in Lubbock County Jail Wednesday night in lieu of $30,000 bond.

A 16-year-old boy, also charged in the case, remained in the Lubbock County Youth Center Wednesday.

A police officer noticed the school was on fire about 4 a.m. Jan. 27. The blaze ripped through the first-floor library, destroying the school's book collection, reference materials and several general-use computers.

In addition to setting the fire, the two teens were accused of ransacking classrooms, breaking equipment and stealing a few small items such as walkie talkies, police sources said. Damage estimates exceed $200,000.

In other action, the Lubbock County grand jury indicted two men accused of stealing graveyard monuments to use in a makeshift backyard cemetery.

Christopher Ray Jessie, 27, of the 2800 block of 66th St., and Robert T. Odom, 26, of 1909 28th St., each face up to two years in state jail if convicted of theft from a grave, said prosecutor Trey Hill.

After receiving a tip Nov. 5, police officers found numerous tombstones, urns, vases, statues and crosses at a 66th Street house. Jessie was arrested immediately, and Odom was taken into custody a short time later.

Both are out of jail on bond.

Lubbock Police Detective Larry Manale worked for weeks to trace the stolen items' origins, discovering that one tombstone and several urns and vases belong to graves at the City of Lubbock Cemetery. One headstone, dated 1884, was taken from a historical cemetery in Arlington.

Grand jurors also indicted a former elected water district director for threatening to kill the district's manager in retaliation for a wire-tapping indictment.

Stanley Miller, former Precinct 2 director of the High Plains Underground Water Conservation District 1, faces up to 10 years in prison and a maximum $10,000 fine if convicted of retaliation.

Miller, 41, was indicted Dec. 17 for unlawful interception of a wire communication. He is accused of secretly attaching a dictation recorder underneath the manager's desk and illegally taping several conversations.